


with so many light years to go, and new things to be found

by janie_tangerine



Category: Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (2017), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Gen, Humorous Ending, I Don't Even Know, M/M, Minor Kylo Ren/Rey, Multi, Poe Dameron's Jacket, Polyamory Negotiations, Post-Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Sickfic, Star Wars: The Last Jedi Spoilers, Threesome - F/M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-04
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2019-02-28 10:23:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13269453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/janie_tangerine/pseuds/janie_tangerine
Summary: in which Poe is sick, Finn has to re-evaluate his relationships, Rose is a gift and Rey has good reasons to be optimist about the future.





	with so many light years to go, and new things to be found

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DoubleDoubleToilAndTrouble](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoubleDoubleToilAndTrouble/gifts).



> So, for the end of the year prompts extravaganza I was doing on tumblr I got _post tlj where the resistance is still living on the falcon, Poe gets sick but dosen't take care of himself so he gets worse and so Finn, Leia, Rey, Rose, etc take care of him. Can be Finn/Poe, Finn/Poe/Rose, Finn/Poe/Rey, or Finn/Poe/Rose/Rey, which ever combination calls to you. Bonus if Kylo Ren can somehow get a cameo_ , which turned into... well, it's finn/poe/rose with rey being a lovingly supportive person, kylo ren DOES SORT OF GET A CAMEO EVEN IF HE DOESN'T TECHNICALLY SHOW UP and it's crack, but never mind. idek. there's some... very minor... rey/kylo but you can also interpret it platonically I guess? Idk if it's a real deal breaker you can skip her conversation with finn /o\ anyway this is... like... I didn't tag it crack on a stick because it wasn't THAT cracky but like don't expect angst, this isn't that kind of droid. Also idk if Kalonia survived the movie (I guess not) but I needed a medic and who can come up with SW character names so I kept her alive because I could. Fight me.
> 
> Also I'm apparently doing SW fic now. WHO KNEW. I tried. *shrug* Title from Europe's Greatest Classic Song Of The Eighties because titling crack-ish fic after 80s stadium anthems is my jam. Also, I don't own anyone of course, only the crack. I'll... saunter vaguely downwards again I'M SORRY IDK WHAT THE HELL THIS IS I hope it's decent enough.

It’s been a few days on the ship trying to get their bearings back and to figure out which planet is less risky to land on when Poe starts sneezing.

And not just a little.

A _lot_.

The fifth time it happens as they discuss plans, his chest almost shaking with how strongly he coughs, Finn can see General Leia getting definitely worried about the situation.

“Poe,” she tells him, “are you sure you don’t want to lie down?”

“Nah,” he says, “it’s just a little cold. Really. I’ll be good in a couple days.”

“It’s not as if we have _pressing_ things to do,” the General presses on. “Really. Lie down. We can handle this.”

“I don’t doubt that, but I’d rather be here.”

She shrugs. “Well, can’t stop you, but the offer’s open.”

He doesn’t cough anymore after then, but Finn hears him do it again as he heads to the tables in the control room where they decided to eat in lack of a better space.

“Poe,” he tells him, “you really don’t sound fine.” Okay, it’s not like Finn would know, since where he comes from getting sick isn’t a thing and if you do you’re _faulty_ , and the ship is kept in the same state and at the same heat level exactly to make sure people wouldn’t _catch colds_ , but still, he can see that in between the coughing, the reddened eyes and the fact that Poe’s going around with his jacket on at all times even when it’s exceedingly hot on the ship, he can’t be feeling well.

“It’s okay,” Poe replies, a little too quickly, with a little too much effort. “It’s not my first time round. It’s a bug. It’ll go away in a day or two.”

“If you say so,” Finn replies, knowing when to surrender and realizing that Poe wouldn’t really budge even if it’s obvious that he’s lying. “But if you want to take a moment I can just bring you some dinner. You could keep Rose company.”

She’s still not cleared to leave the bed, or so Kalonia, the only surviving medical officer in between them, says - another couple of days and she can walk around, though.

“I could,” he replies, “and I kind of want to, but - you heard the General. If these people are following _me_ other than her, I can’t just - I need to set an example. A _better_ example. Really. I’ll be fine.”

 _No you won’t_ , Finn wants to say, but Poe’s gone a moment later.

At dinner, Rey sends him a _look_ , then glances at Poe. Finn shakes his head and shrugs minutely. She shrugs back and he has a feeling that if she could talk to him without Poe hearing she’d tell him he really needs some rest.

Don’t they all know.

——

The situation doesn’t change for the next day or so.

Then, just as they finally seem to have settled on this Outer Rim planet that should have, if not support, at least a population that’s not hostile, Poe stops talking because he just _can’t seem to stop coughing_ and then he does, for a moment -

Just to faint immediately after, and he doesn’t crash to the ground just because both Finn and Rey were nearby and they manage to catch him by the arms before he hits his head on the Falcon’s floor. They lay him down gently on the ground, and then Finn reaches out and touches Poe’s forehead.

“Let me guess,” he says, “he’s _not_ supposed to be burning up, is he?”

Given how everyone else takes the news, he’s _not_.

——

They drag him to the bunk next to Rose’s, who insists to stand up and help but is stopped by Lieutenant Connix, while BB-8 hovers around Kalonia who’s in turn checking over Poe’s vitals.

Finn just hopes it’s nothing that won’t go away with some rest, because -

In what to _him_ amounted to maybe a month he left the First Order, joined the Resistance, almost died, almost lost the only two friends he made twice or at least he thought he did, then Rose seemed about to die on him _just after having kissed him_ , fuck’s sake, he most likely killed his old commander and he’s traveled through half of the damned galaxy.

He needs a rest and he needs Poe to _not_ die on him twice. The first time was bad enough.

Kalonia leans back after what looked like a brief but extremely thorough check-up.

“Right,” she says, turning towards him, Rey and the General. “I don’t know how he managed to catch it, but it looks like a mild bronchitis. The bad news is that I had some meds specifically from that on D’Qar and on the old flagship and that we don’t have any here, so unless we stop somewhere to buy some we’re out.”

“Please tell me the good news,” the General says.

“Well… it’s mild. If we keep him hydrated and make sure he rests and gets enough fluids in him, maybe he can ride out the worst of it on his own. Anyway, he’s not going to die from it.”

It’s telling that they _all_ turn to look at Leia. She looks back at them. Then a very weary sigh leaves her lips.

“And to think that I was looking forward to sharing the responsibility, for once. Fine enough. Rey, you’re the pilot. Work out with Chewie if there’s a planet nearby where we can go find those meds _and_ they won’t kill us on sight. Finn, if you don’t mind, just keep an eye on him so that he’s looked after and Rose has _company_ , too.” She _winks_ at them. BB-8 beeps something that sounds like agreement.

Finn _really_ needs to talk to Rose about that kiss.

“Kalonia, tell them what they should make sure of and then please just check on him regularly, if you can spare the time.”

“Of course.” She waits for Leia and Rey to leave, then turns back to him. “Right. It’s really not that hard - make sure he drinks a lot of water, and if you manage to find some juice or whatever, get him to drink that, too. Keep his forehead cool and get a bucket ready because at some point he’s going to either throw up or cough something you wouldn’t want to wash off the sheets, especially given that we’re all in close quarters. Keep him warm. And _don’t_ make him stand up unless he’s asking to go to the fresher and if he is, _go with him_ or he might fall over. Got it?”

“Sounds easy enough.”

“Then good luck,” she tells him, and follows Leia outside the room.

Well, _shit_ , Finn thinks, looking at Poe’s skin tone, way paler and less healthy than usual.

He just hopes Kalonia’s right and it’s nothing too serious.

——

“I’m sorry,” Rose tells him some half hour later, after Finn has left and come back with a wet piece of cloth that he’s keeping on Poe’s forehead and a chair, so he can sit down at his bedside. BB-8 is currently resting in the corner of the room, offline, but apparently constant beeping noise might end up disrupting Poe’s rest so the droid is on orders to not be too noisy until his owner gets his bearings back.

“For what?” Finn asks her, even if he thinks he knows what this is about.

“For - springing that kiss on you,” she says, not quite looking at him, more at the covers under her hands. “I mean, I didn’t know whether you would like it or not, but - I thought I was going to die, you know? And I thought I should just seize the chance while I still had it. But - I hadn’t seen the two of you, or otherwise I wouldn’t have.”

Finn, _not_ for the first time in the last month, feels confused as fuck and mostly, like he’s just walked into some kind of alternate reality.

“Rose,” he says, “just - I think there’s a few things in here that I’m not following. First, _seize what chance_ , and second - _you hadn’t seen the two of us_?”

She looks up, then glances towards Poe’s hand, which is - ah, right - currently being held in Finn’s as he uses the other to keep the wet cloth on his forehead.

“ _That_ ,” she says, “is something you - uh - usually do with either… your family or your _loved ones_. If you get my meaning. And when it comes to seizing chances, it’s just - I had only heard of you through what _he_ said, you know? And if you listened to him you were the most amazing human being that graced the galaxy, ever.”

Finn thinks he _must_ be blushing.

“I guess then meeting the real thing wasn’t much of a confirmation,” he mutters.

“Well,” she says, “you’re missing the part where _I kissed you_. I - when we left, I thought Poe somehow had it wrong and only said those things about you because he misinterpreted your actions. Because why would he say such things of someone who just wanted to _run_? But - then I spent time with you, and I saw you fighting for the right cause, and you helped me tear that town apart, and - I saw you going against that stormtrooper captain. I saw you standing up for what’s right. And I _knew_ he wasn’t wrong. Actually, I could see what he saw, I think. And so - I’d have been glad to die for you, really, but I also thought that if I had to, at least I could have kissed you before I did. But if I had known you and him were a thing -”

Finn thinks he understands, now.

He also thinks he’s nowhere near ready to navigate something such as this.

Fuck, he’s just gone from completely - from not being supposed to be _a person_ to _this_ and if only he knew how to straighten that shit out in his head, that’d be nice.

“Rose, can - can you hear me out a moment?” He grasps on to Poe’s fingers. Poe grasps weakly back, but he’s definitely not doing it consciously. “I just - I _don’t know_ , all right? I had never kissed anyone before you, I didn’t even know that you hold hands with people you _like_ and - listen, I’d lie if I said I _didn’t_ like him. Or that I didn’t think about, uh, kissing him, too.” Because he _did_. Oh, he _did_. In the desert, and after finding out Poe was alive after all, and as he took clothes from Poe himself when he had to get dressed before -

Yeah, he _does_ want to kiss Poe. Very much. Still -

“But it doesn’t mean I didn’t like you kissing me. Or that I don’t _like you_.”

“… Really?” She says, sounding suddenly excited, just for it to die down a bit a moment later. “But - I mean, if I’m up against _him_ -”

“Rose, he’s damn amazing, but so are _you_ , and honestly, why would you - just, do the comparison? I don’t have a goddamn clue of what’s going on with me. I haven’t _not_ been a stormtrooper for a three months put together, even if it feels longer. I need to figure it out. But I do like you. _And_ him. And I really didn’t mind. Honest, if things were reversed - I can see your point.”

“In what?”

“In kissing whoever you like if you’re about to die and you wouldn’t have another chance to. Really. It’s fine. We’ll - I’ll figure it out. And we should probably ask _his_ opinion, too.”

Rose rolls her eyes, _very_ openly. “Finn, did you listen to me before? Everything I knew about you before we met, I learned from the stories _he_ told around the base. If you think he _wouldn’t_ kiss you, you’re blind.”

Finn has his doubts about it, even if now that he thinks about it, Poe’s face as he handed Finn those clothes and helped him out of that horrid med-suit he was in - maybe - well, Finn wouldn’t know how you look at people you want to _kiss_ rather than just be friends with, but he think that maybe Han Solo _had_ looked at the General like that, when -

 _When_.

He takes a deep breath and moves the chair closer to Poe’s bed.

“Maybe we should ask him when he wakes up,” he says.

“ _What_?”

“Well, if he wants to kiss me. And whether he’d be fine with it if I wanted to kiss the _both_ of you, given that you’re fine with it.”

“Finn, I wouldn’t presume -”

“Rose, he saved my life and gave me my damned _name_ and I’d die for him all over, but you showed me that there’s an entire world beyond my well-being and my friends’s, and you’re a pretty damn cool person, too, and you _did_ almost die for me, I think that I’m more than justified if I also want to give it a chance, right? Just - seeing where it goes. I guess. If you’re fine with it.”

She seems to consider something for a moment, then mutters something that sounds like _to hell with it_ and stands up, getting out of bed. Then again, Finn figures, taking a couple steps towards Poe’s bunk shouldn’t qualify as doing something exceedingly dangerous she should be grounded for.

“Finn, for - if _he_ wants to share with _me_ , that’d be - I can’t even begin thinking about it because certainly people in my line of duty don’t usually share _anything_ with commanders except the cause. Just -” She puts a hand on his shoulder, then one on Poe’s, cautiously. “I guess we can see where this goes after he wakes up.”

“Sounds good,” Finn says, and maybe it’d have been a romantic moment in any other occasion, except that then Poe wakes up with a spasm and Finn barely manages to grab the bucket and turn him so that he’s leaning over it. Good thing, because then he starts coughing, _hard_ , and not just the usual - by the time he’s done and Rose is supporting his back and Finn’s still holding him up, the bucket is splattered with yellow-ish phlegm that Finn hopes is _supposed_ to look like that. At least it’s not blood.

“Hey,” he tells Poe, as he breathes in heavily. “How are you feeling? For real.”

Poe makes a sound that was probably supposed to be a laugh but sounds more like he’s wheezing. “Like shit,” he admits.

“Well, at least you’re admitting that,” Finn says. “Rose, can you hand me some water?”

“Sure.”

“Finn, if I drink I’m going to throw it up.”

“Not according to Kalonia. You should be hydrated, or so she says. Half a glass at least, or you’re not riding this out until we find meds.”

“Fuck,” he says, and then doesn’t protest any further when Rose hands Finn a glass and helps keep him upright as Finn puts the glass to his lips gently. He drinks slow and he actually manages to swallow most of it before he tells them that he’ll really puke if he has more.

Finn puts the drink on the side and they help him lay back down.

“Go back to sleep,” Finn tells him. “You’re supposed to, anyway.”

“Fuck,” Poe says, and then, “thanks. You don’t have to be here.”

“So you say. Get some rest.”

It’s telling that Poe doesn’t protest and closes his eyes and passes out at once.

His fingers are still grasped around Finn’s.

Rose leaves the room and comes back with the piece of cloth that was on Poe’s forehead before - she got it wet again. She sits on the side of the bed, placing it on his forehead, and Finn doesn’t even think before his free hand grasps hers again.

They don’t move for a while.

——

A few hours later, after Poe wakes up twice and coughs his lungs out and then passes out for good, he volunteers to go clean the bucket as Rose says she has the situation under control and will call if it gets worse. Good thing that with all the sanitation work he did for the First Order he knows more than enough about washing any fluid off most surfaces. After he’s done, with BB-8 trailing worriedly after him, he goes to find Kalonia, who’s fairly engrossed in a card game with Leia, but then again there’s not much to do at this point, is it?

“Er,” he says, “he’s _coughing_.”

“He should be doing that,” she confirms. “Is he coughing _blood_?”

“No.” _Not yet,_ at least.

“Good. Until he does, don’t get too worried - if he gets rid of the phlegm, he should get better soon. If he coughs blood, just warn me.”

“Right. Understood. I’ll, uh, go talk to Rey a moment if -”

“I’ll bring that to Rose,” Connix tells him. “You can go catch up with Rey.”

“Thanks,” he tells her, and hands her the bucket before heading for the cockpit.

——

“Hey,” he tells Rey as he sits down next to her. The droid rushes inside and moves down at her feet - she reaches down to pat its head and then motions towards the empty chair.

“Hello,” she smiles back at him. She looks tired but _good_ , he thinks. “How’s Poe?”

“Not fine, but according to Kalonia it’s going as it should when you’ve got whatever it is that he caught.”

“We found a planet where they might sell us those meds,” she tells him. “We’ll be there in three days or so. _Thanks_ , BB-8, I know I’m awesome. And how are _you_ doing?”

He wants to laugh. “I don’t know. I mean, not counting what happened _before_ I got myself wounded trying to use that lightsaber, I’ve woken up what, five days ago, and in the meantime I destroyed an entire city, killed my previous captain, almost died twice, got myself arrested, I kinda lost Poe’s jacket and I think I _like_ him but I also _like_ Rose and ah, yeah, she kissed me just after she saved my life. What do I even make of _that_?”

Rey laughs and hits him in the side. “Wow, not even out of the First Order’s clutches for six months and you already have _two_ people with their sights set on you?”

“No one said Poe -”

“Please, from what Leia tells me if he wasn’t coughing his lungs out he’d be down with kissing you, too. Wait, what?”

The droid is beeping. Very fast.

“Oh, thank you.”

“What did he just say?”

“That both you and him are ridiculous and that of course Poe would like to kiss you, _first_ , and then possibly go farther, but I think he’d be very embarrassed if I told you his business, so I won’t. That said, I think I didn’t do too bad for myself.”

“Like?” Finn asks, choosing to ignore _what_ exactly might BB-8 just have told her.

“I raise you having to convince Skywalker to come out of hiding, finding out you have a _force bond_ with the enemy -”

“Wait, you have a _force bond_ with -”

“Kylo Ren? Has gone silent for a while, but yes. Anyway, try _that_ , then finding out that he ended up where he is for… well, admittedly legitimate reasons, from _his_ point of view, having a clear vision of him going back to the light, shipping yourself to the First Order flagship to try and convince him to turn -”

“Wait, _you were on that ship_? Rose and I destroyed that damned planet also because we were looking for someone who’d make sure the First Order wouldn’t blow us up when you came back and _you went straight there anyway_?”

She shrugs. “It sounded like a good idea at the time?”

He _has_ to laugh at that. He _has_ to or he’ll start crying instead, or _something_. “You know, I wish I could be angry but it just sounds like something _you_ ’d do. I imagine it didn’t end there?”

“Snoke might have ordered him to kill me and he might have killed Snoke instead.”

For a moment, Finn is floored. “ _Wait_ , so -”

“Then he asked me to rule the galaxy with him,” she goes on. “And - I’m _here_ , so obviously that didn’t go over well, but why do you think _he_ is the Supreme Leader now?”

And - doesn’t she sound _sad_ as she says it?

He takes her hand. This time, she doesn’t tell him to _not_ hold it.

“I’m sorry,” he tells her. “I mean, I never knew him as anything other than - what he was, but if you say there’s something good under that mask -”

“He’s not wearing it anymore, I think,” she says, shaking her head and grasping back at his fingers. “And - I think there is. It’s - I don’t know how to explain it, but - I wanted to hate him on principle when I realized what was happening. Then I had to talk to him, at least. And - there’s just so much _hurt_ behind the mask or whatever it is, you can’t ignore it for long. He’s a bloody mess, _that_ ’s for sure.”

“Even after killing -”

“ _Especially_ because of that,” she says. “Shit, I just - I wished I could stay angry at him. I couldn’t. You know, I could feel how much you loathed discussing your… captain.”

“Phasma? You don’t say.” He sort of wishes he _hadn’t_ killed her if only because he _loathes_ killing people and that was also one of the reasons why he wanted to ditch the First Order, but he can’t avoid feeling resentment creep up his stomach and taking a hold of it if he only just _thinks_ about Phasma and her recalibration and her cruelty.

“He felt the same around Snoke. Just - _more_.” Rey says, shrugging, and - well, fine, if she puts it like _that_ , he thinks he can see why she _couldn’t let that go_. Never mind that she just looks _sad_ , not disappointed or angry.

“Rey, uh, am I wrong here or you’re seeing it as your _personal_ failure or something?”

“Maybe,” she admits. “I just was so _sure_ -”

“Well, if he wanted you with him I guess he’s not that dumb.”

“Finn!”

“Seriously, who _wouldn’t_ want you around? I don’t know about ruling the galaxy, sounds like too much of a hard job and I’d rather not, but -”

She laughs, a few stray tears escaping her eyes. “You’re an arse,” she says, obviously not meaning it. “But thanks for trying to cheer me up.”

“Looks like it’s working. And - well, I just - listen, I’ll be straight with you. Before I ran into Rose, I was about to bolt.”

“Wait, _what_?”

“I was about to, because the First Order was going to destroy the main ship and _I_ was on it and _you_ would be on it if you came back, or you’d end up in their clutches directly. I wasn’t ready to look beyond _my_ survival back when we met Maz, and I wasn’t ready to look beyond mine and yours just now. It took me seeing with my own eyes what they did to… other people, and a few other things, to realize that I wanted to be _here_ and that there was something more important than my own life at stake. And then Rose _was about to die for me_ but never mind that. People don’t just see what’s right if you push it on them and they’re not ready. From what you say, he probably isn’t there yet. But if you say there’s the chance he might be, then…” He shrugs, trying to put it into words. “Then we actually might not be totally fucked yet. If he gets there. I’d keep on trying, if the weird Force thing happens again.”

She wipes at his eyes. “That - sounds fair. This trip really did a number on you, didn’t it? A good one, though.”

“At least that. But let me tell you, I’m really glad you’re here and not _ruling the galaxy_ , or we’d be all utterly fucked.”

She _does_ laugh at that, giving his fingers a last squeeze before checking back the coordinates. “I’m not interested in ruling anything,” she says. “You’re right. Too much work. But - I think I needed to hear it. Thank you. And for what it’s worth, I think it’s just about fair payback you have _two_ people wanting to kiss you.”

He _knows_ he’s blushing now. His face feels so hot it might burn. “Come on -”

“Really. He’ll be fine, and _she_ ’ll be fine, and I’ll be there to make fun of you all the time, don’t worry.”

“ _Good_ , great, then just be sure I’ll be there to make fun of you all the time while you deal with Emperor Drama Ren, but for what it’s worth I hope it works out well for _you_ as much as for all of us.”

“Thank you,” she says, and then she stands up and hugs him again, and he holds back.

He can wait a bit until he goes back to the bunks.

——

When he does, BB-8 has stayed behind with Rey, Poe’s still out and Rose is up and about - she changed, took a shower, changed her own sheets and has found fresh ones for Poe’s bed that she declares she’ll change next time Finn drags him to the fresher, and she doesn’t look like someone who _almost died_ not long ago.

He doesn’t know what it means that the moment he realizes it, he feels so utterly relieved he could faint on the nearest chair.

 _Maybe_ , he figures, maybe it means that he _does_ want to kiss her again, though maybe they should get their shit straightened with Poe before going there.

Still -

_I think it’s just about fair payback you have two people wanting to kiss you._

He doesn’t know about that.

But fuck if he doesn’t feel his stomach clench in pleasure at the prospect.

——

By the time they’ve landed on the planet where Connix can get the meds, they’ve all spent two days taking turns on the damned chair - him, Rey, Rose and the General, and if at some point Finn saw her run her fingers over Poe’s face with something that looked like regret on her face, well, he’s never going to tell anyone and it cannot hurt, and he thinks he gets it. Poe’s never really been conscious much beyond asking to go to the fresher, throwing up once and coughing up phlegm into that same bucket that Finn’s washed one time too many. Kalonia does say it’s standard, though, and until he’s coughing blood everything is fine, so they hold on until Rey comes back with the darned meds and he forces Poe to swallow a couple of pills with the next glass of water he manages to keep down.

He doesn’t like how unnaturally pale Poe still looks and he hopes he actually eats something substantial from this point on, but they can only wait and see if he gets any better.

“When he wakes up,” he tells Rose a short while later, “ _everyone_ is keeping him grounded if he tries to go back to his antics from before.”

“Agreed,” she says as she adjusts the blanket, bringing it up to Poe’s neck. “You know, someone asked me if I was angry with him about my sister.”

“Are you?”

Rose shakes her head. “No, because he _would_ die for the cause before anyone else. But it’s good to know _he_ wouldn’t have sacrificed you to it.”

“Says the person who about did the same.”

“No one ordered me to.”

“That’s because you can only be an idiot up until a certain point,” Poe groans, his voice barely audible, and Finn almost falls off the chair as he turns it to the bed and sees that he woke up and he’s trying to sit up.

“What - shit, wait a moment, you haven’t eaten anything for a week, don’t - just don’t,” he says, helping him up. “And what did you mean?”

“Finn, at least give him some water,” Rose says, handing Poe a glass.

“Thanks,” he croaks, and swallows the entire thing down. “Wow. Right. Much better. I was saying, I’d be a complete fucking tool now if I hadn’t realized that going in with guns blazing isn’t always the only plan. I just hope we don’t have to do it again. And meanwhile I feel like complete crap. How long -”

“Some four days,” Rose says. “But I see those pills are working, at least now you’re conscious.”

“At least _now_ \- wait, _four days_? Shit, I have to -”

Finn puts an arm in front of him, in the exact same move Poe had pulled on him when he had attempted to join Skywalker out in the sand.

“According to Kalonia, the only things you _have_ to do are getting two of those pills every eight hours, eat something, _rest_ a few days until your fever’s broken and take it easy for the next week. It’s not like it’s going to take that much longer to get to the planet we were headed anyway.”

Poe stares at him and backs down immediately - Finn figures that he did look pretty convincing. “Fine. Can I go wash my face at least?”

“Sure. I’m coming with. And call if you need help.”

Finn doesn’t go with him _inside_ the fresher because he has up until now and he’d know that a man might want his privacy in that specific location, and when Poe comes out of it with at least his face and hands clean and a new set of sleeping clothes, he does look a tad better than he did before. Finn pushes him back inside the bed, though, and Rose comes back inside the room with what looks like a light soup and some drink that’s… not water.

“Kalonia said the drink should be good to get some more sugar in you and the food was the only edible thing for someone sick on the ship, or so she said. Go slow but eat _something_ , you haven’t kept down anything that wasn’t water since you got sick.”

“Shit,” Poe says, taking the tray. “I’ll - yeah. Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

He ends up eating half of the soup and drinking all of the energy juice thing Kalonia sent over, but Finn figures it’s good enough he’s keeping it down.

“Right,” he says, “you have the next two pills in two hours. And - do you remember anything?”

“Of the previous five days? Not really. Why?”

He looks at Rose. She looks at him. Poe looks at the both of them and he immediately puts on a smile that’s definitely sincere but also looks a bit forced and a bit _too_ wide.

“Oh, did you two, you know, get together? I figured you might. Congratulations, if -”

“We haven’t done anything, yet,” Finn interrupts him. “Mostly because there’s a, uh, a variable we need to count.”

“A variable? _Rey_?”

Finn can’t help it - he breaks down laughing. “Poe, _Rey_ is currently trying to figure out how to make Kylo Ren, _or_ Ben Solo, as she calls him, understand the Dark Side is a very poor life choice. And they’re _telepathically linked by the Force_ or something. I love her more than I love myself and I’d die for her, and I think the reverse is valid, but she’s not a variable when it comes to _her_ and I being together. I guess.”

“Rey and _Ben Solo_ , what - okay. I need you all to give me a detailed summary of what the hell went on while I was out, but never mind - so who would that be?”

“ _You_ ,” Rose says, and she sounds like she’s almost about to break down in laughter, too. “I mean, half of the base knew _you_ wanted to kiss him since way before he woke up. And I think he wants the same.”

“ _You_ -” Poe starts.

“I have eyes, damn it,” Finn says, not quite looking at him, and then he _does_ , and he just - he has to say it. “And other than that, seriously? _Me_. I don’t know, I’d think that after our thrilling escape, the fact that _you_ were the first person in this galaxy to see me as more than a serial number and about _everything else_ it wouldn’t be too far-fetched that maybe I _like_ you, too? Fine, I like _her_ as well, which is why we were waiting for you to wake up and see if you were down with, uh, taking it slow and, you know, see where it goes if I’m with the both of you? I guess?”

“Finn,” Poe interrupts him, his hand immediately clamping down on his, “I don’t know if you’re aware - no, you’re probably not. Rose, are _you_ aware of that one compliment most people paid me back when we were, you know, _an entire base_?”

“Uhm,” she stammers, “you mean, that rumor going around that once you walked in on Jessika Pava getting it on with an entire null-gee polo team and you asked if everyone was sober and consenting, they all said yes, you shrugged and told them to have fun and you left?”

“ _That_ rumor exactly. Jessika was very grateful and no, it wasn’t a rumor. Anyway, that stated, knowing _that_ , you think it’s likely that I wouldn’t be fine with sharing, especially with such a lovely lady?” He winks at her, and Finn can entirely pin the moment that _something_ must make Rose’s insides feel all fluttering, because that’s _the exact same effect_ Poe’s having on him.

“No,” she finally says.

“Good,” Poe says, “so, does that mean we should all kiss now? Because all things considered, it sounds like a great plan.”

Doesn’t Finn know it.

“Well,” Rose says, “ _I_ had the last round. I think it’s high time you two finally go for it, wouldn’t it be?”

That’s - entirely reasonable, Finn says, and maybe his fingers are shaking ever so slightly as he leans down, cups Poe’s face and brings their mouths together, and he moans a little when Poe’s hands reach up and grab the back of his head, bringing him further down, and while the angle is shit and they definitely need to do this when neither of them is sick - he can feel Poe holding back in case he infects Finn, too, and that’s probably why he doesn’t try to use his tongue, but it’s still a hell of a kiss, and Finn’s grinning like there’s no tomorrow as he leans back and Poe is, too, that same grin he gave him when they decided they were going to fly out of the First Order’s clutches, and he knows the next one will be _better_.

“Right,” he says, “we should do it again.”

“Totally,” Poe says, “but maybe when I’m better. I wouldn’t want either of you to end up like _this_ , it’s miserable enough. But if you want to go for it again, I’m more than glad to watch,” he says, winking again, and no one who’s still running a fever should be _that_ attractive, but he has a point, and so Finn goes to wash his mouth thoroughly _just in case_ and when he comes back he finds Rose with her hand on Poe’s, telling him something, but then she stands up and stalks right up to him and she has to stand on her tiptoes to reach his mouth again and _properly_ , and -

Yeah, Finn decides, kissing people is a lot better when you’re _returning_ it, and he’s looking forward to doing it with _both_ of them as soon as he can.

——

“I have news,” Rey says as she barges inside the room bringing breakfast the next day. They’re _all_ startled - Rose almost falls down from the chair she had been occupying while Finn might have laid down in Poe’s bunk, it’s big enough for them both after all. “Wow,” Rey says, “I see you haven’t lost time. Anyway, congratulations all three.”

“Thanks,” Finn groans, “but - you look _giddy_. What happened? What are the _news_?”

He rolls out of bed so that she can hand Poe the tray with his light breakfast and usual juice with another two pills neatly placed next to the glass.

“Well,” she says, “I know where your jacket is.”

“My - wait, _his_ jacket?” He asks, nodding towards Poe.

“Right,” Poe says, “wait, he said he had to change when attempting to hack the codes, wouldn’t it have been in the ship of that guy who sold you to the First Order?”

“Maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t,” Rey shrugs, “but point is, _now_ it’s in Kylo Ren’s room.”

“ _What_?” Poe splutters, almost choking on his drink, at the same time as Finn himself. Rose just stares at Rey as if she’s not processing that information.

“Indeed,” she says, still grinning. “Finn told you that it seemed like we had this Force-connection thing, right? So, Snoke said _he_ planted it so that I’d be tricked into going there, but it just wouldn’t add up, and I didn’t - I _know_ what I saw. And I don’t think it can be that easy to meddle with something like _that_. Anyway, I tried to tap into it again.”

“And it worked?” Finn asks.

“Totally. Okay, it had to be both ways for us to talk and he wasn’t talking to me, so I just was there for a bit and took a look around. He did seem fairly unhappy, for what it’s worth.”

“And _our_ jacket was in his room?”

At _that_ Rey’s expression turns kind of sheepish, in a way Finn doesn’t like much.

“Technically,” she finally says.

“ _Technically_?” Rose asks.

“Well,” Rey goes on, “he was… kind of wearing it, so I guess it was in his room, _and_ on him.”

“Would that even _fit_ him?” Finn asks, before realizing _what Rey actually said_.

“It was a bit tight, yes,” Rey confirms.

“Are you telling me that _the new Supreme Leader_ of the First Order is _wearing my jacket while he’s locked in his Supreme Leading room_ or something of the kind?” Poe asks, sounding halfway fascinated and halfway horrified.

“Yes,” Rey replies cheerfully, patting his shoulder. “Hey, it’s a step ahead, right? If he’s _wearing your jacket,_ which technically is also Finn’s, but that - oh, wait. I think I know.”

“What?” Finn asks.

“You let me wear it for a bit back when you came back for me,” she says, sounding overtly fond.

Poe groans. “Are you telling me that while I’m having adult conversations about _sharing_ with both Finn and Rose here he’s handling the fact that you told him no by wearing _my_ jacket which _you_ accidentally wore while brooding on his lonesome?”

“… Nothing to add,” Rey confirms. “But hey, it’s good news! If he does, then he most probably won’t stay where he is for long, which should only benefit us. I should go tell Leia, probably. Congratulations, the three of you! And I swear I’ll get that jacket back at some point, it’d be the least.”

BB-8, who had been hovering around her, beeps _something_.

Poe shakes his head all over again. “I can’t believe you.”

“What did he just say?” Finn asks him.

“That apparently I should just lend my jacket to the entire First Order to win this war. Yeah, _no_ , but thanks for the suggestion.”

“Oh, you know your droid’s right,” Rey says, and then she claps both Finn and Rose on the shoulders before waving cheerfully and heading back to the control room where Leia most likely is.

For a moment, the three of them say nothing, and then one of those Porg things that were on the ship comes in from the door that she left open and about flies straight into Poe’s empty hands.

“Well,” he says, with a certain gravity to his tone, “in between _this_ , Kylo Ren wearing my jacket and the three of us possibly being together, I think the three of us are the _least_ weird thing that’s happened to the Resistance all month.”

Rose bursts out laughing, Finn does too as his hand finds Poe’s, closing over the porg’s plumage while Rose’s left finds his free one and her right moves on top of Poe’s knee, and he thinks that all things considered -

Maybe, for the first time since he ran from the First Order, he has a very, _very_ good feeling about this.

 

 

End.


End file.
